Oklahoma State University Athletics
OSU vs. Kansas Postgame Quotes
January 18, 2012 | Cowgirl Basketball
Jan. 18, 2012
Oklahoma State Coach Jim Littell
On the game
“I'm proud of the way we came back on two or three different occasions, but we can't continue to dig ourselves a big hole that we've got to dig out of all the time. I was very disappointed with the way we defended the first 10 minutes of the game. Then in the second half when we cut it to two, instead of just having a tough-minded attitude, we relaxed and then before you know it, we're down 11 again. We cut it to two again and we didn't cut baseline once and Sutherland gets an and-one play and now you're down by five again. When we cut it to two the last time, we came down three consecutive times and turned it over three consecutive possessions. You're not going to beat a good team. They've got a good team. They're experienced. They're good at two post positions. They had four people in double figures and a fifth with nine. That's a solid team. Here's the bottom line: we missed 12 to 15 two footers from point blank range and you can't do that and win in this league.”
On the paint
“I think Caroline Davis may be the second-best post player in the conference behind Brittany Griner. It's pretty evident since she's averaging 20 points a game and shooting 51 percent from the floor. You just can't allow her to get that deep in the lane, then Sutherland with 15 points and 22 rebounds. Wow. They've got two experience posts that are a handful and we didn't do a real good job of blocking them out. Anytime you go and get 22 rebounds, you're hooping a little bit.”
Tiffany Bias
On the game
“I think we came out a little bit sluggish. We really weren't ready to play, as it showed on the court. It was just timing. Our timing was bad, so once that's off we can't really execute plays right.”
On the run at the end of the first half
“Coach gave me the freedom to come up and pick up full court, because we needed that energy and we needed that boost right before half because we had a little bit of a gap. That's what got me here is defense, so you go back to your fundamentals and get down and play defense. They were making lazy passes in to inbound it, so that's when we got steals and closed the lead a little bit before half.”
Kansas Coach Bonnie Henrickson
Opening Statement
"I'm just really, really excited for our group to come in this place that Oklahoma State has played so well and come out of here alive and make enough plays down the stretch. Credit to them: they got back in it and into us and made some big, big shots. The (Liz) Donohoe kid made big shots, obviously (Tiffany) Bias makes a big three to cut it close, but the ones they didn't make, (Aishah Sutherland) got all the rebounds. Defensively, she was a monster on the boards and a tough match up with Toni Young, who's every bit as athletic as Aishah is. We're really, really excited to have some success on the road and build some momentum for our group."
On the key to securing the lead down the stretch
"I don't know how much time is on the clock when (Sutherland) makes the three point play. She drives the baseline and goes and-one; I don't know how much time is on the clock at that point. That's a huge play. Angel's (Goodrich) charge is a huge play, because they're mounting a run and they're into a run by then. We need to rename the league - I don't care how many teams are in it right now, it's not that - it's the one possession league. It's a one possession league, that's what it is. We've all been in them. Of our five games, we've had four one possession games down the stretch, and when you start looking at stealing possessions and getting extra possessions, it's huge every play, and our kids did just enough to win. Credit to them. We just made fewer mistakes than they did, because we made plenty: 19 turnovers and they got into us. Tiffany (Bias) did a great job into us on a rebound outlet and scored on an inbounds pass she got us. We weren't solid enough there."
Aishah Sutherland
On grabbing 22 rebounds
"I don't want to say it was easy, but I've always gone to the boards. That's my main focus when I get into the game is go to the boards, I just didn't realize I had that many."
On the key to securing the lead down the stretch
"Defense. I feel like defense was the key just to slow them down on the offensive end and make smart plays."
